Global Warming in South Carolina
South Carolina's Coast What's at Stake - 07/31/07
South Carolina's 900 square miles of low-lying land are especially susceptible to the effects of sea level rise and destructive storm surges from hurricanes and tropical storms.
Charleston's metropolitan area, including Mt. Pleasant and North Charleston, is an important economic center. In 2005, the Port of Charleston was the busiest container port along the southeast and Gulf coasts. It handled 727,000 tons of cargo worth $46 billion.
Statewide, the industry contributes $9.4 billion to the Gross State Product and supports 207,000 jobs. Myrtle Beach alone accounts for 40 percent of this revenue . These economic engines are vulnerable to the stronger hurricanes that are expected to come with global warming. Much of South Carolina's coastal area could be inundated by a storm surge from even a minor tropical storm or hurricane.
Hurricane Hugo was the largest storm system to hit South Carolina in modern history. As a Category 4 hurricane, Hugo's winds extended far inland. Shaw Air Force Base-75 miles from the coast and over 80 miles from Hugo's center-recorded sustained winds of 67 miles per hour, with gusts up to 110 mph.
While Hugo stands out in its destructive power, South Carolina regularly suffers from severe weather systems from tropical storms and hurricanes that make landfall in other states.
Wildfires Force Evacuations - 02/11/08
The most recent dramatic embodiment of the drought gripping the Southeast came this weekend in the form of a 250-acre wildfire that threatened homes in Conway, South Carolina, and forced 60 homes to be evacuated. It was one of dozens of fires that broke out from Alabama and Florida to Virginia.
A combination of low humidity and high winds contributed to the immediate fire risk, but the long-term drought has set the stage by leaving a lot of dry vegetation ready to burn.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today analyzes the causes of the historic drought gripping the region. While a Bermuda high is a short-term factor, and La Nina, the cold pattern of water in the Southeastern Pacific, is a medium-term factor, there's something else at play.
Both La Nina and the Bermuda High affect the flow of air across the country, and in this case conspire to starve the region of moisture.
What is known is that even minute changes to ocean temperatures and currents can have huge effects on world weather patterns, which should be warning enough that messing with the Earth's thermometer is risky business.
